#IrishAbroad: Olivia Colman wins a Golden Globe for Irish produced comedy The Favourite

There was a win for Irish production company Element PicturesElement Pictures is run by Ed Guiney and Andrew Lowe, with offices in Dublin and London, working across production, distribution, and exhibition. Element Pictu... More at the Golden Globes last night as Olivia Colman took home the award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy for her role as Queen Anne in Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Favourite.

The Favourite had been nominated in 5 categories. Colman’s co-stars Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz lost out in the the Best Supporting Actress category to Regina King for If Beale Street Could Talk, while screenwriters Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara were pipped by Nick Vallelonga, Brian Currie, and Peter Farrelly for Green Book. Green Book also scooped the award for Best Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy and Best Supporting Actor for Mahershala Ali.

There was a surprise win in the Best Motion Picture, Drama category, where Freddie Mercury biopic Bohemian Rhapsody beat out the heavily favoured A Star is Born. A Star is Born had to console itself with a lone win for Lady Gaga’s song Shallow. Best Actor, Musical or Comedy went to Christian Bale for his portrayal of Dick Cheney in Vice.

We are thrilled for Olivia and all the team of The Favourite, led by visionary director Yorgos Lanthimos. This award coincides with the opening weekend for The Favourite in Irish cinemas which gives Irish audiences the opportunity to see the film for themselves. We are very proud of the film and hope that Irish audiences respond to the film as enthusiastically as the international response to date.Ed Guiney and Andrew Lowe, Producers – Element Pictures

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the team at Element Pictures, and of course, Olivia Coleman on her win at last night’s Golden Globes. This is an extraordinary achievement that will propel the momentum for the film which has also just opened in Irish cinemas.

We wish Element and all the team behind the film the very best of luck as this awards season progresses. James Hickey, Chief Executive – Screen IrelandFís Éireann/Screen Ireland (FÉ/SI) is the national development agency for Irish filmmaking and the Irish film, television and animation industry.

The Favourite has been a critical and box-office hit since it premiered on the Lido in Venice last August where it scooped the Grand Jury Prize and Olivia Colman won Best Actress. In December the film dominated the BIFA’s (British Independent Film Awards) with a record-breaking 10 awards on the night and is currently a box-office smash in the US grossing over $15m to date. The film opened in Ireland and the UK on January first and went straight to No2 in the box office that day.

The Favourite stars Olivia Colman and Academy Award winners Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone and marks the third collaboration between Element Pictures and director Yorgos Lanthimos following award-winning films The Lobster and The Killing of a Sacred Deer.

The film was shot by Irish cinematographer Robbie Ryan and was partly post produced in Dublin. It is currently playing in Irish cinemas, released through Fox Searchlight.

The Favourite is written by Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara and is produced by Ed Guiney and executive produced by Andrew Lowe for Element Pictures. Other producers include Ceci Dempsey, Lee Magiday and Yorgos Lanthimos. The film is an Element Pictures/Scarlet Films production for Fox Searchlight, Film4 and Waypoint.

Element Pictures previously produced Lenny Abrahamson’s Room which won a Best Actress Golden Globe for Brie Larson in 2016, before repeating that feat at the Oscars. All eyes turn to that ceremony. Nominations for the 91st Academy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, January 22nd, with the awards taking place on February 24th.